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In a statement Silva said: “I want to thank all of you for the love and good wishes received in the last few weeks. Special thanks to my teammates, the manager and all at the club for understanding my situation.

“Also I want to share with you the birth of my son, Mateo, who was born extremely preterm and is fighting day by day with the help of the medical team.”

Silva played just once over Christmas, with City attributing his absence to personal reasons.

He was back in the starting XI against Watford on Tuesday night as the Premier League leaders extended their advantage at the top of the table to 15 points before Chelsea face Arsenal.

Silva was back in City's starting XI after missing much of Christmas

He remains pivotal to Guardiola's hopes of winning an unprecedented quadruple - and teammate Sergio Aguero hailed his impact on his return.

“David has some problems and he is resolving them, we are supporting him,” said the Argentine.

“Despite only having a few training sessions because he has had to be with his family, he is playing very well.

“Physically he is doing well and he is a very important player for us.”

Meanwhile, Guardiola revealed Kevin de Bruyne insisted he wanted to start against Watford, despite fears he’d suffered a serious injury in the New Year’s Day clash with Crystal Palace.

The Belgian international was left in agony after a reckless challenge from Jason Puncheon in stoppage time at Selhurst Park.